I spend a lot of time at the post office. In addition to my annual weekly planner project, which I pack and ship myself, I also operate a small online shop which has me dropping off mail several mornings per week. The Williamsburg, Brooklyn post office draws a unique crowd, ranging from parents with young children applying for passports, people moving to or from NYC with giant boxes of their possessions, the type of guy who obviously collects sneakers, and of course, young creative people (aka “people with visible tattoos”) who run online businesses.

Last year more than 3.5 million generous people from around the world supported tens of thousands of independent creators on Kickstarter. Together they brought imaginative new ideas, and a more diverse culture to life. Today we’re celebrating some of the brightest moments from that community with The Year in Kickstarter: 2016.

It was a big year for the team here at Kickstarter HQ, too. We opened up to independent creators in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Mexico, introduced a new way to share and experience the creative journey with Kickstarter Live, published the findings of the first study to trace Kickstarter’s impact on the creative economy, launched The Creative Independent, and so much more.

Over the next year, lifting the voices of independent creators will become even more important. We’re committed to giving those voices a stage, and helping them earn an audience. To that end we’ve just launched a creative initiative to encourage more people to create in 2017. Speak your mind. Bring your vision to life. Now’s the time to create.

Last year we published the results of the first study to examine Kickstarter’s impact on the creative economy. The findings were exciting news for independent creators — Kickstarter projects lead to job creation, greater earnings, career advancement, and the opportunity to pursue creative ideas on your own terms.

The numbers are inspiring. Tens of thousands of new careers created. Hundreds of thousands of creative collaborators paid. Billions of dollars in broader economic impact generated.

The stories behind the stats are even more compelling. Today we’re bringing a handful of those stories to life. You’ll read about a team in Tokyo reviving the art of Japanese woodblock printing, an experimental dance troupe that captivated Minneapolis with a new contemporary dance festival, and a designer from London who’s making cycling safer on city streets around the world.

We look forward to sharing more of these stories from around the Kickstarter community. If your project has made a great impact on the world share your story in the comments below. We’d love to hear them.

The new year is the perfect time to dial it up to 100% — to resolve to be happier, more generous, and more creative, too. That’s why we’re launching Make 100, a creative initiative focused on editions of 100. As 2017 kicks off, we challenge you to bring your brightest idea to life, x100.

Being part of Make 100 is simple: launch a Kickstarter project this January featuring a limited-edition reward capped at 100 backers. You could make a run of 100 zines, or release 100 tickets to a performance — as long as your project follows Kickstarter’s rules, the possibilities are 100% endless. And while you don’t need to make it all the way to 100 backers to be a successful part of Make 100, you do need to reach your funding goal, so be sure to make a plan before you share your limited-edition project with the world.

Even in a city that embraces sensory overload, Las Vegas' Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is impressively overwhelming. This massive annual gathering of gadgets offers a first look at new products and serves as a survey of the ideas, trends, and buzzwords that will shape the next year in tech.

With so many examples of AI, VR, AR, IoT, BLE, and TMI on display — including more than 225 Kickstarter-funded projects — even the most voracious early adopters can have a hard time taking it all in. We've created this guide to help you cut through the noise and discover a few of our favorite things, whether you'll be walking the show floor or just following along at home.

Last month, Kickstarter Live became available to all creators that have launched a project on Kickstarter. Since then, we’ve seen creators use it to broadcast dance rehearsals, their drawing skills, cooking tutorials, and more. We also hosted a few live streams to share more about how the tool works and how creators can use it to connect with their communities. Here’s some of what we learned.

Last month, we hosted an event to introduce designers and technologists to members of Brainpool, a collective of experts that are passionate about using design to create positive impact. We set up six tables dedicated to different stages of the design process and encouraged questions, open discussion, and of course, doodling. Here were some of the takeaways from the evening.